


A Pole-arm Meets A Sword

by alisayamin (sh_04e)



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Banter, Blade of Marmora Keith (Voltron), Blade of Marmora Lotor (Voltron), Destruction, First Meetings, Gen, Keitor Secret Santa 2018, M/M, Meet-Cute, Missions Gone Wrong, Rescue Missions, Shapeshifting, Some Humor, Space Battles, Star Trek References, Swords, Undercover, Undercover Missions, and keitor is not a couple yet, krolia is mentioned, so its like pre-keitor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-10
Updated: 2019-02-10
Packaged: 2019-10-25 14:32:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,129
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17726999
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sh_04e/pseuds/alisayamin
Summary: “Am I to believe you received my distress signal?”“You think?”orLotor had been on a year-long mission when everything went up in smoke. Stranded on a planet that was light-years away from the nearest Marmora outpost, he didn't expect someone to come to his rescue in such a short amount of time.





	A Pole-arm Meets A Sword

**Author's Note:**

  * For [inuyashamunkey](https://archiveofourown.org/users/inuyashamunkey/gifts).



> I'M SORRY I'M LATE AS A PINCH HITTER but here it is!!!! So like, imagine a VLD universe where Lotor joined the Marmora instead of the original rescuing-Alteans plot. ENJOY!!!

Lotor was humble enough to admit that yes, he screwed up the mission. It was technically his fault. In hindsight, he probably shouldn’t have picked that day to forgo the transmutation pill and instead put his (newly discovered) Altean shapeshifting ability to the test.

Well, at least now he knew the time limit of said shapeshifting ability. And he was also running around in the forest of planet Shaia after his cruiser got shot down during his initial escape. Lotor couldn’t help but feel regret from wasting away almost a deca-phoeb worth of political manipulation in order to get into the inner workings of the Kiz solar system. Sure, he didn’t have to disguise as the ugly creature he had posed for the past few phoebs anymore but knowing the movements of the Kiz solar system would have greatly assisted the Blade of The Marmora.

The Kiz solar system was mostly neutral but only time would tell before the Galras found the little niche and robbed away all essence of it. They wanted to save the resources of the Kiz solar system and perhaps ambush the galras when they do eventually invade the 5 rich planets.

Lotor had finally worked hard enough to attend the annual meeting between the leaders of the 5 planets. He was so close to listening to their future plans. The meeting had been a surprise. The day started with Lotor in his room, contemplating the transmutation pill in his hand. He had imagined himself looking like the person he posed as and suddenly, when he looked up in the mirror, that person was already staring back at him. Lotor looked back to his hand and saw the transmutation pill still there. He had done his first shapeshifting!

Unfortunately, that was when his room was barged in and he was told to attend the meeting. He had hastily hid the pill away and hurried after the escort because the meeting was scheduled soon. And halfway through that meeting, he was not aware when his features had changed but the angered shouts in his direction were very telling. Honestly, it was just a really bad day with awful timing.

Lotor sighed as he leaned on a large tree bark. He had just lost the guards chasing him. He had sent out a distress signal earlier on his cruiser but even the nearest Marmora outpost was a few light-years away. It would take a long time for his signal to even reach any of the blades. The problem with accepting a long-term mission was that there was no one there to pick up your pieces if you failed. And what a stupid mistake his had been.

Lotor could only hope that all the data he had retrieved would be found by any blades who decided to answer his distress signal. Of course, Lotor _could_ disguise himself again and blend in with the locals but his shapeshifting ability could only last about 3 vargas.

In short ….he was doomed.

 

* * *

 

In less than a quintant, all his firearms were out of juice and the only thing he had left was his blade. He had definitely underestimated the amount of armed forces the planet was willing to spare to track him down.

Lotor took a deep breath as he faced the army of soldier droids and braced himself. He could take them down, he was trained to. But he would not escape unscathed. And that was the bitter truth of it all. If the army didn’t kill him, his wounds would.

With those final thoughts in his mind, Lotor charged forward as his blade elongated into his trusted double-bladed pole-arm. He used all his senses to avoid the blasts he could not block with his weapon. He jumped over troops, slid on the forest floor, manipulated the metal bodies of some droids as temporary shields and sliced through the crowd. Lotor ignored the eventual ache in his limbs and pushed through.

He wasn’t sure how long he kept at it before he suddenly heard commotion behind him. There were metallic clanging noises and explosive sparks from destroyed droids but it most definitely wasn’t because of Lotor’s twin blades. He spared a moment to glance behind him and never before had he been so relieved to see the Marmora uniform.

The masked blade member moved swiftly through a swarm of droids, easily taking down 5 in two blinks.

“MOVE!” the blade member shouted just as Lotor shouted “DUCK!”

In a split second, the blade member ducked and threw his sword towards a droid that was behind Lotor and Lotor simultaneously moved to the side to avoid the thrown sword while he slashed three metallic abdomens of the druids that were behind the blade member.

After retrieving back the sword from the fallen soldier, the blade member readied his stance, standing back to back with Lotor. Both of them felt each other’s racing hearts.

Lotor wondered if the blade member took comfort from the momentary physical contact like Lotor himself did. It felt good to be among teammates again. “Am I to believe you received my distress signal?”

“You think?”

They both charged towards the remaining droids on their side and made quick work of eliminating them all. Occasionally, they would repeat the same tactic of eliminating each other’s target or even teaming against a singular soldier.

The last soldier fell with a final impressively thrown sword by the blade member.

Lotor calmed his breathing and admired the mass amount of bodies around him. He looked to the blade member who was once again, retrieving his sword from a lifeless droid.

“Do you make it a habit of throwing your sword around?”

The blade member shrugged as he tugged his sword out from the droid’s chest with an ominous grating noise. “Works doesn’t it?”

Lotor conceded with an incline of his head. “Unorthodox use of a sword but yes, it does work. And your aim is impeccable.”

The blade member made no further comment and started walking after shortening his blade and placing it back in its sheath.

Lotor did the same with his pole-arm and jogged to catch up with the blade member. “So. How did you get here so fast?”

“I was in the neighborhood.”

It was an odd choice of words, almost as though it was born from a type of slang. After a moment of silence, Lotor piped up again. “You’re rather short to be part of the Marmora.”

The irritation was obvious when the blade member replied, “Well you’re rather talkative!”

“It’s a travesty really.” Lotor went on, completely ignoring the waves of annoyance wafting from the other. “Knowledge or Death, they say. And yet no one seems to be able to hold up intelligent conversations for a group that claims to choose knowledge if not death.”

The blade member had quietly stared at Lotor before mumbling, “No wonder Kolivan sent you on a political mission…”

“Why is that?”

“You talk too much.”

Lotor laughed. “I haven’t felt this amused in a long time. Might I know your name?”

“Keith.”

….Definitely an odd name for a Galra.

“Mine is Lotor.”

“I know.”

As much as this ‘Keith’ tried to hold up a cold distant façade of a regular blade member, Lotor could hear a smile behind the Marmora mask.

They both continued walking with Lotor opening up on how his mission had blew up. Keith was a good listener and did not criticize Lotor’s mistakes. He was actually quite impressed by Lotor’s ability to shapeshift.

“It comes from my Altean blood.”

“You’re part Altean?”

“Yes. My mother was Altean. What about you?”

“What _about_ me?”

Lotor grasped Keith’s hand and tugged him closer. “I suspected you to be a fledgling Galra but your speech and… swordsmanship tells me otherwise. And your name.” Lotor’s hand hovered over Keith’s masked face. “It definitely isn’t Galra.”

Taking Keith’s silence as tacit approval, Lotor deactivated the Marmora mask to see the face beneath. He was surprised to meet such strong eyes. There was history in those eyes; it spoke of pain and endurance. There were no traces of immaturity as Lotor had first predicted from Keith’s size. Instead, Lotor knew from the bottom of his heart that he was in the presence of a warrior.  

Keith’s skin was also of an unmistakable race. “You’re human.”

Keith looked surprised. “How’d you know?”

“I make it my business to know everything.” Lotor smiled smugly.

Keith rolled his eyes and tugged his wrist out of Lotor’s hold. “Planned on infiltrating Earth as your next mission?”

“Of course not. An elder blade member had already-“ Lotor blinked at the realization. “You’re Krolia’s son.”

Keith smiled and gave a small shrug. “Thought you’d notice from my blade.”

Lotor deadpanned. “You expect me to memorize every single luxite blade?”

Keith cheekily retorted, “I thought you made it your business to _know everything_.”

Accepting his defeat, Lotor lifted his arms with a chuckle. He already had a plan in his head to make sure all his future missions would be with Keith. His brain had been rotting from political nonsense and lack of proper conversation from any of the blades.

 

* * *

 

They had two more run-ins with a group of droids before they finally reached Keith’s ship. It looked like an old ship but sturdy enough in Lotor’s opinion. They both entered the ship and Lotor casually inspected the helm with one hand leaning on the back of the pilot seat.

Keith was just strapping himself when Lotor reminded, “Remember how I said they _shot me down_ when I took off with my own ship?”

“Shut up and strap in.”

Lotor gave an impressed hum at Keith’s instruction and made his way to the only other seat at the back of the ship. “Feisty little human.”

Once buckled in, he realized that his seat was no regular seat either. He had the controls to the ship’s rear blasters. “Are these blaster controls at my disposal?”

Keith shouted a sarcastic, “You think?!” and Lotor smiled deviously. Time for payback for blowing up his ship.

“Hold on back there.”

“Oh please. As if this thing could go-“ Lotor had to forcibly swallow the rest of his sentence when Keith shot into the planet’s atmosphere at an incredible speed.

Keith quickly activated all weapons once they were in the sky. It was only a matter of seconds before the lasers started shooting. “Rear blasters ready.” He looked back to Lotor with a smirk. “Go nuts.”

Assuming Keith meant ‘Go all out’, Lotor smirked back. “With pleasure~”

 

* * *

 

Kolivan sighed. He had two idiotic blades standing in front of him that had just been rescued from the Kiz solar system with the help of their new warp drive system.

“Would either of you like to explain how a mission of ‘Gaining political information on a whole solar system’ and ‘Hunting a Weblum’ could lead to a quarter worth of destruction on a potential ally planet?”

Keith was the first to answer, “They started it.”

Kolivan lifted a hand to silence their youngest blade member. “How did _you_ even get involved in all this? Your mission was to hunt for a Weblum for its scaultrite.”

Lotor answered this time, “The neighboring solar system suffered from a supernova. While most of the planets survived, there are a few dead planets so it’s only logical to hunt for a Weblum there.” Then he turned to Keith as his interest was suddenly piqued. “Ah that’s what you meant by you were in the ‘neighborhood’.”

“Yeah.”

“And ‘Go nuts’ is…” Lotor trailed off, expecting Keith to explain.

“Go crazy.” Keith answered easily.

Lotor made finger gestures to imitate firing with the rear blasters with questioning eyebrows.

Keith nodded. “Go crazy like, don’t hold back. Shoot wherever and whatever.”

Lotor smiled with an excited glint in his eyes. “Humans have such fascinating speech patterns.”

Kolivan sighed again. Well. At least he knew who Lotor got on most with. And he hadn’t seen Keith speak so openly before with anyone but himself and Krolia so maybe he could pair them up for missions. He looked back to the screen that showed Planet Shaia’s destruction. If they could aim that kind of destruction (from just a rundown ship, a double-ended pole-arm and a sword) towards their enemies then maybe it wasn’t such a bad idea.

(He hoped.)

 

* * *

 

Keith had accepted a new assignment and was told that he would have a partner this time. He wasn’t even surprised to see the familiar smug face of Lotor when he entered his cockpit.

“New mission?” Lotor asked with a smirk.

Keith raised his eyebrows with a smile. “You think?”

Lotor approached Keith and stared into those fierce eyes that first captivated him. “Where to?”

 

**Author's Note:**

> Krolia is both a proud and worried parent hahahaha She also secretly cannot wait to whoop Lotor's ass when he eventually courts Keith


End file.
